


Only The Scarecrow Knows

by Doylebaby



Category: Actor RPF
Genre: Halloween, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-30
Updated: 2015-10-30
Packaged: 2018-04-28 22:57:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,470
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5108723
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Doylebaby/pseuds/Doylebaby
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sean is lost and is looking for help, he gets more than he bargained for.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Only The Scarecrow Knows

[ ](http://doylebaby.livejournal.com/pics/catalog/691/111343)

**Only the Scarecrow Knows**

Sean stepped out of the car and looked around. The roads were abandoned, no one in sight, except for a lonely scarecrow out in the field on his left. He sighed in resignation; he must have taken a wrong turn somewhere and ended up in the middle of nowhere.

A gust of wind made him shiver and he opened the car and grabbed his jacket from the backseat. He pulled his collar up as the wind seemed to pick up. Movement on his left made him look up, but it was only the scarecrow madly spinning around.

Sean sighed. Trust Dom to screw up his directions. He shivered again and decided to get back in the car, turn around and see if he could retrace his path and find where he had taken a wrong turn. 

He put his key in the ignition and started the car, nothing happened however. Sean tried again, cursed when after repeated tries, the car stayed silent. 

“Great!” he thumped the steering wheel. “What the fuck is wrong now?” 

Sean was far from technical and except from knowing where to look for the petrol tank, or its meter on the dashboard, cars were a mystery to him.

He pulled out his mobile but of course there was no signal. “Someone is trying very hard to piss me off... and succeeding,” he growled quietly. 

He got out of the car again and although he knew there wasn't a house in sight, he slowly turned around and looked again just to make sure. Than his eyes narrowed, beyond the still madly spinning scarecrow he thought he saw movement. 

“There's a field with a scarecrow in it, the owner of the field must live close by.” With grim determination Sean started to walk in the direction of the scarecrow, hoping that whatever was moving, was someone he could ask for help. 

When he finally reached the scarecrow, Sean realized that the movement was a man, dropping bales of hay from a cart. He waved his arms and shouted, “Hey, hello!” but the man didn't react; he was probably too far away.

Sean looked up at the scarecrow, which was quite decently dressed for a man made of straw. His face was mainly hidden in the shadow of his large straw hat and Sean chuckled when he noticed someone had given it a dark, curly haired wig. He was also wearing a long orange scarf, which Sean would have loved to take to use against the chilling wind, but it was just out of reach. 

Keeping his collar together with one hand, he started off to try and get the man in the cart's attention.

When Sean came closer, he noticed the man had the same long scarf as the scarecrow wound around his neck. “Someone is an avid knitter,” Sean murmured and then he shouted again to attract the man's attention. 

The man did look up now, he was younger than Sean had first assumed. He sported similar dark curls as the wig on the scarecrow, maybe someone had wanted to play a joke on him. He didn't acknowledge Sean though, just frowned and went back to throwing bales off the cart, while the donkey slowly pulled the cart along. 

Suddenly something black and small shot out of the bushes on the side of the road, right in front of the donkey who reared up and then took off, dragging the cart along with him. 

The young man was thrown sideways but managed to hang on to the cart. A sudden burst of wind took hold of his scarf, blowing it over the side of the cart so that it got caught between the spokes of the wheel. 

Pulling taut.

The young man tried to pull the scarf free, but when it kept winding further in the wheel he started to claw at his throat as his air was cut off.

The donkey kept on running and the cart disappeared in the distance as Sean watched... paralysed with horror. 

Coming out of his shock Sean patted himself with trembling hands, trying to locate his mobile. When he finally pulled it from his inside jacket pocket, his shaking fingers dialled 999, but to his utter dismay there was still no signal, there was nothing he could do!

The black cat that had startled the donkey, setting a devastating accident in motion reappeared from somewhere and ran back to where it had previously come from and when Sean followed it with his eyes he noticed there was a cottage hidden among the trees. 

It could well be the unfortunate young man's home, but Sean knew he needed to find help.

He quickly made his way over and started pounding on the door, yelling for help. When the door was finally opened, Sean didn't even look up, he just turned back to the road gesturing wildly. “Please, call an ambulance, the police, anyone! Please, hurry!” 

There was no immediate reaction and Sean turned back to look at whoever had opened the door, to convince them of the urgency of his plea.

Sean gasped and paled. “You! How? I... He...” Coherency was lost at the sight of a slender young man with dark curls standing in the door opening, the figure only too familiar. 

“Please, come inside.” The young man grabbed Sean's hand and pulled him into the house, he tugged Sean along to the back of the house into the kitchen. “Sit down, please.” He pointed at a chair by the table.

Sean shook his head, still reeling from his experience. “I-I don't understand,” he muttered, feeling the need for a stiff drink. Absently he noticed all kinds of straw creations, varying from dolls, to wreaths and miniature scarecrows scattered across the table. 

A hand patted his shoulder and pieces of straw stuck to Sean's jacket. “Strong tea, I think,” the young man nodded. “You might think alcohol, but that's no good for a shock. Strong tea with lots of sugar is,” the man said as he bustled about making tea. 

When they both had a cup of tea, the man sat down across from him and quietly sipped his tea. 

“Please explain this to me,” Sean demanded, still feeling shaken up by what he had seen.

The young man nodded. “I will. Just tell me what date it is today?”

Sean frowned and shrugged. “October 31st.” Not understanding what that had to do with anything.

“Exactly,” the man nodded as if that explained everything, but when he saw Sean's blank face, he continued. “My name is Orlando. What you witnessed out there happened a long time ago. To my great-grand uncle.”

Sean jumped up and leant on the table. “What? That's not possible! I saw that man, he was throwing bales off the cart and then... and then his scarf-” he sank down in his chair again, burying his face in his hands as he saw the vivid images of what had happened all over again.

“It's true,” Orlando confirmed quietly. “He was the brother of my great-grandfather, his name was Orlando and I was named after him. It was a scary, horrible accident and when they found him...” Orlando shook his head. “There was nothing anyone could do.”

Sean sipped from his tea, holding his cup with none too steady hands. “I can't believe that. I saw him... God, I saw him choke!” 

Orlando shoved his chair back, pieces of straw flying everywhere and he walked over to Sean. “It's okay,” he said, he helped Sean out of his jacket and started rubbing Sean's back. “You're not the first who witnessed this, and I doubt you will be the last. This happens every year at Halloween.”

“Halloween?” Sean breathed. “This happens because it's Halloween?”

Orlando nodded and started to massage Sean's neck, bits of straw sticking to Sean's sweater. “Yes, I don't know why, maybe because it was such a freak accident.”

“Yeah, maybe,” Sean sighed at the gentle massage. “That feels good. My name is Sean, by the way. My car broke down and I was trying to find help when I... when I... saw him.” 

“I know,” Orlando murmured as he kept a gentle pressure to Sean's muscles. 

“You know?” Sean asked confused. “How?”

“The... apparition only appears to those who don't know...” Orlando gave a final pat to Sean's shoulder before walking to the sink to wash his hands. “Would you like some more tea?” he asked over his shoulder. “We can call a garage for your car in the morning, although it wouldn't surprise me if your car will be fine by then.”

Sean shivered. “I don't like the sound of that.”

Orlando refilled his cup and again pieces of straw fell on the table. He quickly brushed them aside. 

“What's with all the straw?” Sean finally asked.

Orlando pointed at a side table filled with more straw dolls and wreaths. “I make straw decorations. They sell well, especially in Autumn.”

“You've done a great job on the scarecrow,” Sean motioned with his head to the field visible from the window. 

Orlando frowned. “Scarecrow? There's no scarecrow.”

“I've seen it.” Sean chuckled. “It has the same scarf as-” he inhaled sharply, shoved his chair back and strode to the window, looking to where he believed the scarecrow to be.

It wasn't there.

He turned on his heels and stopped in front of Orlando with an angry look on his face. “What game are you playing with me?” he growled. He pointed to the field. “It was there. I _know_ it was there. I even wished I could get hold of its scarf because it was so cold.”

Orlando held up his hands. “No game, Sean. Honest. I don't know anything about a scarecrow, but doesn't it strike you as odd that you saw it wearing the same scarf?”

Sean pushed the heels of his hands against his eyes. “I could really do with a stiff drink right about now,” he muttered. 

Nodding, Orlando pulled a bottle from a cupboard and a couple of glasses and poured two measures of whiskey, pushing one glass across the table towards Sean, who stood watching the field outside, unable to believe his own eyes. 

“I wish I'd never set foot out of my car,” he said after picking up the glass and taking a deep gulp, feeling the burn in his throat. 

“I'm sorry you feel that way,” Orlando replied, a small smile on his face. “I wish we could've met under different circumstances.” He looked down at the table, drawing circles with his finger.

“Och lad,” Sean sat down in the chair beside Orlando and took Orlando's hand in his. “I'm sorry, none of this is your fault. It just... unsettles me. There's no way to explain all this, unless I'm living a nightmare.”

Orlando didn't lift his head, but his hand squeezed Sean's tightly. “I'm reliving this nightmare every year, Sean. Every year!” 

Not knowing what else to do, Sean stood and pulled Orlando up from the chair, his arms going around the slender man to try and offer comfort. “That's horrible, lad. I wish I knew what to do.”

“Just stay tonight,” Orlando whispered, holding on to Sean as if he was about to disappear. “Please, say you'll stay?”

“Of course, if that's what you want. I can't really go anywhere without my car anyway,” Sean replied, plucking pieces of straw out of Orlando's hair. 

“Thank you,” Orlando said and it sounded relieved.

 

Orlando prepared a beef stew for dinner and Sean had to admit he was hungry, despite the rather nerve-wracking day he'd had. 

“This is good, lad,” he complimented Orlando, pointing with his fork at his plate and the young man smiled happily at him.

After dinner the dishes were done and then Orlando turned to Sean, just a little hesitant. “Can I show you something?” he asked and Sean nodded curiously. 

Orlando walked around the corner and into the living room of the cottage. He pulled two doors open, revealing a cupboard bed with room for two people. 

“I hope you don't mind sharing,” Orlando said. “The couch is rather lumpy.”

Sean knew he would love to share more than just a bed with Orlando but nodded. “That sounds just fine. I'm exhausted to be honest.”

Orlando showed him where he could freshen up and after stripping to his boxers, he asked Orlando where he wanted him, front or back.

“Of the bed,” Sean added with an eye roll at Orlando's grin. 

“The back,” Orlando replied and let Sean climb into the bed and get settled before climbing in as well, shuffling backwards and then pulled the blankets over both of them.

“Cosy,” Sean murmured as he put an arm around Orlando's waist because it was the best place for it he told himself.

Despite the tempting feel of Orlando's body pressed close to him, Sean felt his eyes starting to droop and before long he was fast asleep.

~ * ~ 

Sean woke up from something pricking his bare belly and he noticed Orlando had left the bed. When he threw back the covers, he found pieces of straw all over the bed and he quickly brushed them aside. Rubbing his eyes, Sean climbed out of the bed and went in search of Orlando.

He couldn't find the young man anywhere and, getting a little worried, he called out for him. “Orlando?” 

Quickly getting dressed, Sean intended to check whether Orlando had gone outside and maybe had an accident. As he was zipping up his trousers, Sean looked out the window and froze.

There in the field, visible from the window, was the scarecrow.

“Shite!” He shoved his feet into his shoes, grabbed his jacket and hurried outside, pulling the door of the cottage closed behind him. He walked towards the scarecrow cautiously, not really knowing what to expect. After yesterday having it jump down from its pole wouldn't have surprised Sean at all.

“Idjit!” he scolded himself as he halted below the scarecrow and looked up. 

This time the hat didn't shield the face and Sean's breath halted when he saw the familiar features stilled.

“No, it can't be,” Sean whispered. Was someone playing a nasty trick on him? 

Dom perhaps? It was due to his wrong directions Sean had ended up here in the first place. 

He straightened his shoulders, pulled himself together and headed to his car. Just as he was about to climb inside, he heard a voice.

_'Only the scarecrow knows.'_

Whether it was the wind or his imagination, Sean took heed of the words. He turned back and looked at the scarecrow. 

“I'll be back next year,” he vowed and meant it. He would do anything in his power to set Orlando free.

The End

[](http://www.zoobooz.com/halloween.php)


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